yucatan

Yucatan's electric blue awning and bright yellow print stands out on the streets of Morris Park, the quaint neighborhood in which I live, populated with a dozen pizzerias, corner stores,  and delis sporting uninteresting, bland awnings. I had been wanting to eat here since its opening last August, but never got around to it. Ten months later, my friend and I arrive just as lunch hours were coming to a close. We were alarmed by the complete lack of customers but at least good service is guaranteed in such situations...

We started with warm tortilla chips served with salsa verde and traditional salsa. I don't remember the last time I had freshly made tortilla chips, but these were pretty good. We snacked on these while we waited for our tacos to arrive.

fried white fish/ fried shrimp/ guacamole/ crema/ red cabbage

The seafood gave the tacos a nice crunchy texture but the shrimp itself was very dry and overcooked- the generous heaping of guacamole could only do so much to help alleviate the dryness.

chile pork/ caramelized pineapple/ guacamole/ red onion/ cilantro

I despise cooked fruit most of the time but the juicy chunks of pineapple was a nice addition to the chunks of tender chile and garlic rubbed pork.

carne asada: tender grilled beef/ guacamole/ red onion/ cilantro

My mouth just watered thinking about the juicy and flavorful bits of grilled beef. It was my favorite taco of the five.

                   

burrito stuffed with too many things to remember

 I'm not a fan a burritos, but I'm sure it's tasty by any burrito lover's standards. 

                             

tres leches cake: condensed milk/ powdered sugar/ pound cake/ rum

The cake tasted like almond extract and I was not in the mood for any rum in my dessert. It was very sweet but I had been warned.

                             

return to momofuku noodle bar

From the dinner menu at Momofuku Noodle Bar on June 15th:

warm sesame noodles / eggplant / shredded smoked chicken / pickled nappa cabbage and cucumbers (14)

This could have been a nice bowl of ramen; it was a solid combination of toppings. They definitely skimped on them though (especially the eggplant), and we were left to finish a gigantic tangle of ramen noodles congealed by a bland sesame dressing by itself. The vegetables had nice flavor and texture but the smoked chicken was slightly dry and bland.

braised flatiron/watercress and sea beans/ wild ginger/ porcini mushrooms/ asparagus (18)

 I was thinking about this all on the entire train ride home. The watercress and sea bean salad dressed in the buttery vinaigrette was addicting. The tender bits of pink ginger lent bursts of flavor when eaten with the mildly flavored meat.

strawberry lemon cake truffles (4)

These had an overwhelmingly sweet and dense cake center and the outside tasted like a tart strawberry shortcake ice cream bar shell - cake pops without the stick.

burnt honey / peach soft serve twist (5)

Two unconventional flavors and a strange combination whose taste grew on me with every minuscule  spoonful. It tasted surprisingly exactly like honey and peach fruit. The bits of frozen honey at the bottom were a nice surprise.

Yay for my new mini tripod!